[nikko510]

It is worth having several ACSS cables of different construction, because in fact each of them sounds different.
The R7HE MK2 is amazing and with the addition of an external clock it gets even better. You can hear everything, every change of cables.

 

[FredA]

It is worth having several ACSS cables of different construction, because in fact each of them sounds different.
The R7HE MK2 is amazing and with the addition of an external clock it gets even better. You can hear everything, every change of cables.

Yes. Any small change makes a difference. Not sure yet but i got a couple of grounding tube, and they seems to add a bit of clarity. Not a definitive opinion....

 

[FredA]

Well, here are my first 48 hs with the HE-1 Mkii preamp.

First, a little of context.

I have a dedicated AC line for the system + a Holton DC Blocker + an Audioquest Niagara 1200 + some decent power cords, so the AC feeding my system is not bad at all.

On the other hand, I have a Line Magnetic LM-508 integrated amp, with upgraded internal parts and pretty nice tubes. The LM-508 can be used as power amp, but it's not really a 100% power amp, and using it that way only bypasses the volume knob and I believe some small circuits inside, leaving active all of the tubes in the amp. In fact, many users of the LM-508 consider that using it as power amp (with good preamps like VAC for instance) only changes a bit how the LM-508 sounds, something I shared as it was my case with my AGD Master 1 preamp. With the M1 in the chain I felt the sound only became a little smoother and maybe a little more 3D than using the LM-508 as integrated, but not it was not a huge difference.

Considering what I said before, I bought the HE-1 just in case I wanted to upgrade to monoblocks in the future. I really really was not expecting a big difference replacing the M1 for the HE-1..... ....boy, I was wrong.

The M1 is a great preamp for the money, maybe one of the best at it's price point, but man, the HE-1 Mkii is incredible. I would summarize it as BRUTAL REALISM.
HE-1's resolution is unbelievable. Bass is utterly controled, mids are smooth as heaven and highs are incredible silky, but it's biggest strength is soundstage, without words to describe. I agree with everything Glenn Young mentions in his review of the orginal HE-1 in here: https://hometheaterhifi.com/reviews/amplifier/audio-gd-he-1-stereo-preamplifier-review/ and Kingwa said to me that the Mkii is considerably better. Now I believe him!

Again, BRUTAL REALISM.

Congratulations Kingwa for another incredible piece of gear!

Same thing happened to me going from the m1 (2013) to the he-9 (2019). If it was not for lack of space and my resolution not to spend too much, i would get the he1 mkii.

 

[FredA]

Someone one audiogon said the r7he mkii in nos mode with vinyl sim mode activated was the best he had heard. I selected those settings. If you like an engaging and tubby sound, could be for you.

I like it. Much post-ringing but very organic, engaging. Detailed. I thnk NOS is more detailed than os8 in general. Os8 has better attacks. But with the vinyl sim engaged, it make the sound in NOS quite pacey. And not too tubby. It's much fun.

 

[mivarpet]

For the (Queens_land) 10Mhz clock owners, I wanted to share the some relatively simple mods that have had a positive effect on my system. I have a Queens_land 10Mhz clock and external linear PSU. The clock is great value for money but the case is very light weight. I had some spare 8mm aluminium plate so I cut a piece to size and secured it to the clock case with 4 screws into tapped holes on the 8mm plate. The plate is about 700g on it's own from memory. After some warm up time, I had a listen and there was an improvement in detail, imaging, less grain, and perhaps even the noise floor too.

I then added some good quality feet (AudioSerenity 1 ISO-9H Gel Isolation Pad) and had more of the same improvement.

It's worth mentioning that these feet also made a similar improvement under my DI-20. Interestingly though, I thought my R7Mk2 sounded better without the larger ISO-9H-35 feet.

Even if you don't want to start drilling into your clock case, some extra weight on it and isolation feet may also prove to be a satisfying tweak for you.

 

[slazhx]

For the (Queens_land) 10Mhz clock owners, I wanted to share the some relatively simple mods that have had a positive effect on my system. I have a Queens_land 10Mhz clock and external linear PSU. The clock is great value for money but the case is very light weight. I had some spare 8mm aluminium plate so I cut a piece to size and secured it to the clock case with 4 screws into tapped holes on the 8mm plate. The plate is about 700g on it's own from memory. After some warm up time, I had a listen and there was an improvement in detail and imaging, perhaps even the noise floor too.

I then added some good quality feet (AudioSerenity 1 ISO-9H Gel Isolation Pad) and had more of the same improvement.

It's worth mentioning that these feet also made a similar improvement under my DI-20. Interestingly though, I thought my R7Mk2 sounded better without the larger ISO-9H-35 feet.

Even if you don't want to start drilling into your clock case, some extra weight on it and isolation feet may also prove to be a satisfying tweak for you.

Thanks for sharing. I will try this on my rigs

 

[FredA]

A quick tweak i use is a foam suspension made out of 4 stripes of 2 different foams. And put weight on top too. Like this:

 

[DACLadder]

@mivarpet Nice job! And makes plenty sense as an oscillator is simply a mechanical system. What feet are you using on the R7 mk2 .. the stock feet?

Michael (mivarpet) has done a lot of modding. Taking Currawong's original R7 2017 and converting to R7 MK2. Plus a lot of cap changes on the MK2 digital board and V2 DAC module. Post pictures and let us know what mods have been effective and not.

The converted R7 2017 is the same DAC that started the R7 thread.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/new...ip-resistor-ladder-dacs.853902/#post-13573633

 

[mivarpet]

Hi @DACLadder. I used these feet - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000692874710.html - on my R7 and also M1 as they are a bit more friendly with furniture than the originals and also lend themselves to placement on other feet or insulators. The original feet are screwed in from inside the case, under the circuit board, so it's some work to change them.



The R7 has had it's analog boards, DA boards and PSU board recapped with Nichicon KA spec caps, which are their top grade audio caps and also 105C rated, and Gold Tune (KG) in the PSU board and stages. I've done the same on my M1 too. I really like the sound of these caps as they add a valve like sweetness to the treble without loss of extension and a grain-free smoothness without loss of detail. Bass is full but not bloated and the noise floor is slightly lowered. It's not a job for the faint hearted as there is a LOT of desoldering. I have an automated desoldering machine and without it, if I had to use a manual solder pump, I probably would have damaged the PCBs because there are a great many caps on each board and you need to pull the DAC completely to pieces for this exercise.

The combo of the R7Mk2, 10Mhz clock and Master 1 truly is sublime. The music flows in such a natural and engaging way that the speakers disappear, as does my sense of time!

I continue to be amazed at Kingwa's rare talent as a designer who also clearly understands innately that music reproduction is more than a schematic.

 

[tumpux]

Could you share the pictures of the boards after changing the caps?

 

[DACLadder]

@mivarpet Oh yes, the R7 mk2 conversion retains the original R7 analog boards but with updated V2 DAC modules. Good job. I am loving the Nichicon cap change on my original M7 analog boards. Thank you again!

M7 analog board with blue Nichicon KA caps. A powered suction desoldering tool makes this task much easier. That's a lot of caps!

 

[FredA]

Hi @DACLadder. I used these feet - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000692874710.html - on my R7 and also M1 as they are a bit more friendly with furniture than the originals and also lend themselves to placement on other feet or insulators. The original feet are screwed in from inside the case, under the circuit board, so it's some work to change them.



The R7 has had it's analog boards, DA boards and PSU board recapped with Nichicon KA spec caps, which are their top grade audio caps and also 105C rated, and Gold Tune (KG) in the PSU board and stages. I've done the same on my M1 too. I really like the sound of these caps as they add a valve like sweetness to the treble without loss of extension and a grain-free smoothness without loss of detail. Bass is full but not bloated and the noise floor is slightly lowered. It's not a job for the faint hearted as there is a LOT of desoldering. I have an automated desoldering machine and without it, if I had to use a manual solder pump, I probably would have damaged the PCBs because there are a great many caps on each board and you need to pull the DAC completely to pieces for this exercise.

The combo of the R7Mk2, 10Mhz clock and Master 1 truly is sublime. The music flows in such a natural and engaging way that the speakers disappear, as does my sense of time!

I continue to be amazed at Kingwa's rare talent as a designer who also clearly understands innately that music reproduction is more than a schematic.

Kingwa is an artist. He is as passionate as we are, this gives him much motivation. You do not have to brief him on continuous improvement.

He should probably install better feet though on the di20/he. I just added one piece of medium/low density foam underneath each foot. The small humming sound i had is 90% gone. Thanks Michael for the heads up.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

A quick tweak i use is a foam suspension made out of 4 stripes of 2 different foams. And put weight on top too. Like this:

Handsome setup, @FredA

What is all that gear? I recognize only the DI-20HE. What does the USBBridge do?

 

[FredA]

Handsome setup, @FredA

What is all that gear? I recognize only the DI-20HE. What does the USBBridge do?

There is the Afterdarkmaster clock, the big box. The usbirdge sig is my streamer. Underneath, it's its 5v psu.

 

[mivarpet]

Could you share the pictures of the boards after changing the caps?

Unfortunately I don't have any photos of the recapped innards, but they are the same caps that DACladder used in his M7 recap.
Sizing of the caps was fine too and in most cases I was able to go up a bit in uF size.